The chief countries represented in the foreign commerce in 1875 were as follows:
| COUNTRIES. | Imports.[1] | Domestic exports.[2] |
| Argentine Republic | $5,834,709 | $1,301,294 |
| Belgium | 6,189,098 | 12,387,590 |
| Brazil | 42,033,046 | 7,634,865 |
| Central American states | 2,627,359 | 1,042,784 |
| Chili | 789,242 | 2,062,190 |
| China | 13,480,440 | 1,465,984 |
| France | 63,342,631 | 50,133,711 |
| French West Indies and Guiana | 2,037,266 | 1,167,276 |
| Germany | 40,893,386 | 52,517,913 |
| England | 144,195,531 | 321,014,343 |
| Scotland | 11,615,139 | 17,457,991 |
| Ireland | 1,237,167 | 28,327,535 |
| Nova Scotia, New Brunswick | 3,896,350 | 7,724,820 |
| Quebec, Ontario, &c. | 26,308,456 | 23,909,153 |
| British Columbia | 2,154,753 | 1,032,883 |
| British West Indies and Honduras | 4,642,891 | 7,587,218 |
| British Guiana | 2,499,245 | 1,830,807 |
| British East Indies | 15,584,099 | 473,049 |
| British Hong Kong | 1,206,816 | 7,296,070 |
| British Australasia | 3,755,590 | 3,505,345 |
| Hayti | 2,207,173 | 4,870,812 |
| Italy | 9,190,182 | 7,226,554 |
| Japan | 7,772,302 | 1,647,197 |
| Mexico | 11,634,983 | 3,895,792 |
| Netherlands | 2,353,658 | 7,483,010 |
| Dutch East Indies | 6,775,399 | 1,034,159 |
| Peru | 1,344,695 | 2,448,657 |
| Portugal | 480,362 | 2,820,099 |
| Russia on the Baltic | 698,221 | 10,420,706 |
| Spain | 4,534,873 | 7,540,086 |
| Cuba | 66,745,527 | 15,586,658 |
| Porto Rico | 6,980,082 | 2,377,757 |
| All other Spanish possessions | 6,830,187 | 89,889 |
| Turkey in Europe | 72,459 | 3,454,795 |
| United States of Colombia | 12,942,305 | 4,272,950 |
| Uruguay | 2,935,039 | 1,440,665 |
| Venezuela | 5,690,224 | 2,423,254 |
| All other countries, islands, &c. | 10,445,378 | 14,193,956 |
| Total | $553,906,153 | $643,094,767 |
The total number of vessels entered in the foreign trade during the year ended June 30, 1875, was 27,961, with an aggregate tonnage of 11,692,810. Of these, 11,074, of 3,573,950 tons, were American, and 16,887, of 8,118,860 tons, were foreign; 1,028, of 1,141,734 tons, were American ocean steamers, and 1,246, of 3,142,723 tons, foreign ocean steamers. The total number cleared was 28,236, of 11,896,507 tons, including 11,216 American vessels, of 3,736,639 tons, and 17,020 foreign vessels, of 8,159,868 tons. Besides the above, 74,027 vessels, of 31,614,282 tons, entered, and 73,324, of 30,440,626 tons, cleared in the coastwise trade and fisheries. The extent of the merchant marine of the United States at different periods has been as follows:
| YEARS. | Sail, tons. | Steam, tons. | Total, tons. |
| 1790 | 478,377 | ........ | 478,877 |
| 1800 | 972,492 | ........ | 972,492 |
| 1810 | 1,424,783 | ........ | 1,424,783 |
| 1820 | 1,280,167 | ........ | 1,280,167 |
| 1830 | 1,127,304 | 64,472 | 1,191,776 |
| 1840 | 1,978,455 | 202,309 | 2,180,764 |
| 1850 | 3,010,020 | 525,434 | 3,535,454 |
| 1855 | 4,441,716 | 770,285 | 5,212,001 |
| 1860 | 4,485,931 | 867,937 | 5,353,868 |
| 1865[3] | 4,029,643 | 1,067,139 | 5,087,782 |
| 1870[4] | 4,171,412 | 1,075,095 | 4,246,507 |
| 1875[4] | 3,685,064 | 1,168,668 | 4,853,782 |
The distribution of the merchant marine has been as follows:
| YEARS. | Foreign trade, tons. |
Coastwise trade, tons. |
Whale fisheries, tons. |
Cod and mackerel fisheries, tons. |
| 1790 | 346,254 | 103,775 | ........ | 28,348 |
| 1800 | 667,107 | 272,492 | 3,466 | 29,427 |
| 1810 | 981,019 | 405,347 | 3,589 | 34,828 |
| 1820 | 583,657 | 588,025 | 36,445 | 72,040 |
| 1830 | 537,563 | 516,979 | 39,705 | 97,529 |
| 1840 | 762,838 | 1,176,694 | 136,927 | 104,305 |
| 1850 | 1,439,694 | 1,797,825 | 146,017 | 151,918 |
| 1855 | 2,348,358 | 2,543,255 | 186,848 | 133,540 |
| 1860 | 2,379,396 | 2,644,867 | 166,841 | 162,764 |
| 1865 | 1,518,350 | 3,381,522 | 90,516 | 106,394 |
| 1870 | 1,448,846 | 2,638,247 | 67,954 | 91,460 |
| 1875 | 1,515,598 | 3,219,698 | 38,229 | 80,207 |
The classification of the merchant shipping of the United States in 1870 and 1875 was as follows:
| CHARACTER. | Year ending June 30, 1870. |
Year ending June 30, 1875. | ||
| Vessels. | Tons. | Vessels. | Tons. | |
| Registered, permanent | 1,932 | 1,093,649.69 | 2,030 | 1,125,898.32 |
| Registered, temporary | 1,010 | 423,150.37 | 951 | 427,929.60 |
| Enrolled, permanent | 21,150 | 2,584,792.81 | 23,379 | 3,108,440.86 |
| Enrolled, temporary | 375 | 98,147.81 | 584 | 129,948.68 |
| Licensed under 20 tons | 4,531 | 51,766.55 | 5,391 | 61,514.68 |
| Total | 28,998 | 4,246,507.23 | 32,285 | 4,853,732.14 |
Of those reported in 1875, 23,440, of 3,367,618.01 tons, were returned for the Atlantic and gulf coasts; 1,225, of 229,257.51 tons, for the Pacific coast; 5,496, of 837,891.76 tons, for the northern lakes; and 2,124, of 418,964.86 tons, for the western rivers. The number, class, and tonnage of vessels built in the United States for a series of years have been:
| YEARS. | Ships and barks. |
Brigs. | Schooners. | Sloops, canal boats, and barges. |
Steamers. | Total. | Total tonnage. |
| 1820 | 21 | 60 | 301 | 152 | ... | 534 | 47,784 |
| 1830 | 25 | 56 | 403 | 116 | 37 | 637 | 58,094 |
| 1840 | 97 | 109 | 378 | 224 | 64 | 872 | 118,309 |
| 1850 | 247 | 117 | 547 | 290 | 259 | 1,360 | 272,218 |
| 1855 | 381 | 126 | 605 | 669 | 253 | 2,047 | 583,450 |
| 1860 | 110 | 36 | 372 | 289 | 264 | 1,071 | 212,892 |
| 1861 | 110 | 38 | 360 | 371 | 264 | 1,143 | 233,194 |
| 1862 | 62 | 17 | 207 | 397 | 183 | 864 | 175,076 |
| 1863 | 97 | 34 | 212 | 1,113 | 367 | 1,823 | 310,884 |
| 1864 | 112 | 45 | 322 | 1,389 | 498 | 2,366 | 415,741 |
| 1865 | 109 | 46 | 369 | 853 | 411 | 1,788 | 383,806 |
| 1866[5] | 96 | 61 | 457 | 926 | 348 | 1,888 | 336,147 |
| 1868 | 80 | 48 | 590 | 848 | 236 | 1,802 | 285,305 |
| 1870 | 73 | 27 | 519 | 709 | 290 | 1,618 | 276,958 |
| 1872 | 15 | 10 | 426 | 900 | 292 | 1,643 | 209,052 |
| 1874 | 71 | 22 | 655 | 995 | 404 | 2,147 | 432,725 |
| 1875 | 114 | 22 | 502 | 340 | 323 | 1,301 | 297,639 |
On June 30, 1875, there were employed in the cod and mackerel fisheries 1,259 vessels of 68,703 tons, and in the whale fisheries 165 vessels of 38,229 tons. The products of the year ending on that date were valued at $13,588,581,
